[3][4] It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Peru, Suriname, Venezuela, and possibly Guyana.

The rest of their underparts are a slightly lighter blackish brown than the upperparts, with white patches around the legs.

[6] The nominate subspecies of white-tipped swift is found in the Venezuelan Coastal Range and separately in the Andes from extreme western Venezuela south through Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia into northern Argentina.

A. m. tatei is found in the tepui region along the border between southern Venezuela and northwestern Brazil.

[6][3][7][5] The species is mostly seen over montane evergreen forest but also occurs in drier intermontane valleys in Ecuador and northern Peru.

[6] The white-tipped swift is generally considered to be resident throughout its range, but it "can disappear from some sites for months at a time".

[6] The white-tipped swift's breeding season in Venezuela appears to be from April to July but has not been determined elsewhere.